GOD'S WRATH AGAINST SINFUL HUMANITY

Passage: Romans 1:18-32

Key verse: 21

NIV

God’s Wrath Against Sinful Humanity

18 The wrath of God(A) is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.(B) 20 For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made,(C) so that people are without excuse.(D)

21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.(E) 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools(F) 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images(G) made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

24 Therefore God gave them over(H) in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.(I) 25 They exchanged the truth about God for a lie,(J) and worshiped and served created things(K) rather than the Creator—who is forever praised.(L) Amen.(M)

26 Because of this, God gave them over(N) to shameful lusts.(O) Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones.(P) 27 In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.(Q)

28 Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over(R) to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. 29 They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips,(S) 30 slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents;(T) 31 they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love,(U) no mercy. 32 Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death,(V) they not only continue to do these very things but also approve(W) of those who practice them.

Read full chapter
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway

ESV

God's Wrath on Unrighteousness

18 For (A)the wrath of God (B)is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19 For what can be (C)known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, (D)have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world,[a] in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they (E)became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 (F)Claiming to be wise, they became fools, 23 and (G)exchanged the glory of (H)the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.

24 Therefore (I)God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to (J)the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, 25 because they exchanged the truth about God for (K)a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, (L)who is blessed forever! Amen.

26 For this reason (M)God gave them up to (N)dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; 27 and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, (O)men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error.

28 And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, (P)God gave them up to (Q)a debased mind to do (R)what ought not to be done. 29 They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. 32 Though they know (S)God's righteous decree that those who practice such things (T)deserve to die, they not only do them but (U)give approval to those who practice them.

Read full chapter
Footnotes
  1. Romans 1:20 Or clearly perceived from the creation of the world
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway
1. Neither glorified God nor gave thanks to him (18-23) Human beings need the gospel that has the power to save them, for they are under God's wrath by their godlessness (no God in their hearts: neither glorify God nor give thanks to him) and wickedness (cut off from God, the source of all goodness, then all kinds of evil activities done toward others). We have no excuse saying, "I could not know God," for the creator God made men in his image. We are to know him in our conscience, God's innate image. It is plain to see his power and divinity through awesome nature too. Most of all we have the very written word of God translated in our language easy to access with just one click. But by removing God men became proud. They became foolish and ignorant to worship men, animals, and materials rather than God. 2. God's wrath (24-32) As children abandoned by their parents could be the worst punishment, so God's wrath was to leave men to live without God, the source of life and all goodness. Men became like cut off branches, with no goodness in them but live according to their sinful depravity: sexual impurity, idol worship, God-haters, arrogant and boastful. They all became factories of evil. They even approve of those who practice evil.

Prayer: Lord, when we abandon God, we become miserable like drying cut-off branches. Lord, we need Jesus, our Savior who restores our relationship with you.

One Word: Give thanks to God and glorify him!